Big Ten Blog

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Category: MSU

Tough call

Kalin Lucas and Tom Izzo have some decisions to make.

The defending Big Ten Player of the Year has a low right ankle sprain that's slowly getting better.

But Lucas still has trouble cutting, especially to his left, and hasn't done much conditioning-wise in a week.

That's a big concern heading into Tuesday's home game against Purdue.

Since Lucas' game is based on quickness and durability, I can't help but wonder how effective he would be for the 9 p.m. tip-off.

There's a chance a less than 100 percent Lucas could be a liability. We all know that Purdue likes to guard tight and has pesky Chris Kramer leading the charge.

Looking at the big picture, it might be best for Izzo to rest Lucas and hope for the best.

Based on Izzo's comments Monday, it sounds like Lucas has a 50-50 chance.

Knowing how badly Lucas wants to play, what would you do if you were in Izzo's shoes?

Category: U-M

White said U-M had "it" factor

Michigan freshman running back Austin White, whose family has strong Michigan State ties, said when he visited the U-M campus, there was something intangible that struck him.

"I can't tell you what it was," said White, the former Livonia Stevenson back who enrolled at U-M last month. "It was something in me.

"When I cam here, I just felt it inside. It's amazing walking in that stadium. I think it leaves everyone in awe. Any recruit when they come up and ask me, 'How is it?' I say, 'Come to a game and see for yourself.'"

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Category: MSU

Green-Barkley comparison

After MSU's loss on Saturday to Illinois, I asked Illini coach Bruce Weber to give his take on Draymond Green as a player.

Weber compared him to former NBA MVP and All-Star Charles Barkley because of his multi-dimensional skills and similar build.

Not a bad comparison, I must say.

Weber's comments about Green: "I love him. The kid cares. He wants to win. He'll do anything, he listens, he's coachable. To me (he's) like Barkley a little bit. He's got that big body, but yet he's got skills. He's as good of a passer as anyone. ...He just has a lot of things going for him."

Green finished Saturday's game with 17 points and 16 rebounds in what coach Tom Izzo called one of the best single game performances he's seen.

Not bad for a guy that was overweight coming out of high school and rumored to be a likely redshirt candidate as a freshman.

The Spartans sure would be in serious trouble this season without him.

Category: MSU

Lucas out for Illinois

Champaign, Ill. - Michigan State guard Kalin Lucas isn't expected to play in Saturday night's ESPN televised game at Illinois because of a low right ankle sprain, said Matt Larson, the school's basketball sports information director.

Lucas participated in a portion of the team's warm-ups before the game and appears to have a chance to play in Tuesday's home game against Purdue because his condition has improved.

The defending Big Ten Player of the Year, a Detroit native, injured the ankle during the second half of MSU's Feb 2. loss at Wisconsin when he landed awkwardly after a jump shot.

Either Chris Allen or backup point guard Korie Lucious are expected to replace Lucas in the starting lineup for Saturday's 9 p.m. tip-off against the Illini at Assembly Hall.

Category: U-M

1984-85 Wolverines back at Crisler

The 1984-85 Michigan men's basketball team returns to Crisler Arena on Saturay for a reunion as the Wolverines face Wisconsin.

Among those scheduled to attend: head coach Bill Frieder, assistant coach Dave Hammer, players Chuck DeGlopper, Gary Grant, Antoine Joubert, Leslie Rockymore, Steve Stoyko, Garde Thompson and Butch Wade, and team managers Tom Alig, Phil Giroux and Chris Schrot.

The 1984-85 team finished the season with a 26-4 record, which remains the program's all-time highest winning percentage. The team posted the best Big Ten regular-season record in Wolverine history, going 16-2 on its way to the Big Ten title.

Michigan earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and entered the postseason ranked No. 2 in the nation. The Wolverines finished the season on a 17-game winning streak, the longest streak in Michigan history, before falling to eventual national champion Villanova in the second round.

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Category: MSU

MSU holding on to current logo

There's a new interesting twist to the whole logo controversy going on at MSU.

Just received via press release a letter from athletics director Mark Hollis explaining what's going on.

The letter mentions MSU "will use the current Spartan logo design, first used in the late 1970s to build our visual brand identity."

Still confused? Yeah, me, too.

Why MSU officials thought about changing the logo is beyond me. Glad they decided to stick with what works and what the fans like.

The letter:

"We Gather and Engage Our Community to Teach, Support, and Celebrate our Student-Athletes in Their Quest for Excellence!

That's the mission I had in mind since day one. But it can't be done alone.

Our vision of a "consistent and national identity" was designed to bring everyone together. By that, I mean everyone -- from our administration to our student-athletes to you as a Spartan.

When I accepted this position, I stated that as your Athletic Director everything would be done with ONE FOCUS. Having been on this campus for more than 30 years as a student, alumnus, and employee, I have often observed that, as Spartans, we have not always been headed in the same direction. Nowhere has this fact more obvious than in the outward appearance of our team uniforms. We have been an athletic program of different greens, logos, word-marks, and uniform quality. There has been a lack of consistency with regard to our brand. This inconsistency was a result both of using multiple suppliers for our apparel and of uniform decisions being made without a department-wide focus.

After assuming the Athletic Director position, one of my initial objectives was to outfit each of our sports teams in a consistent manner and to do so as a component of a unique and cohesive national brand identity program. To accomplish this task, we expanded our partnership with Nike so that every one of our 25 teams and nearly 800 student-athletes will all wear Nike-designed uniforms and apparel. We feel fortunate to have Nike as a partner, not only to improve the way our teams look, but also for the unique performance advantages their products provide.

As part of the expanded partnership, we requested Nike conduct a department-wide assessment of our brand and identity. It's important to note that this request came as part of our agreement with Nike, but was not a condition of it. There was no cost to MSU for this service. Members of my staff, university administration, and I guided Nike designers through this in-depth process that is still in the final stages of completion.

In this process, Nike has suggested various innovative concepts and design elements, yet it is always Michigan State University that determines the direction we will take. Input from student-athletes, coaches, alumni, donors, students, faculty, and university public relations advisors have been involved in this process.

The recent disclosure of an updated Spartan logo from a trademark registration process has resulted in a flurry of concern and discontentment among some of our students, alumni, and fans. I have given careful attention to thoughtful comments received and sought additional counsel regarding how ideas might be incorporated into the overall strategic brand and identity process. Our primary objective is to achieve a strong and consistent Spartan brand, but rest assured that, as our mission statement attests, bringing Spartans together is one of our fundamental values.

Our identity and branding process is nearing completion and is on schedule for a complete rollout in April. The elements and applications of the brand design will be unveiled collectively at that time. After careful consideration, we will use the current Spartan logo design, first used in the late 1970s, to build our visual brand identity. Using sound branding principles, the university will continue to register some variations of our Spartan logo in order to ensure that this symbol is well protected and firmly associated with Michigan State University. As an athletic department, we are excited about our branding and identity process. We understand, given the tremendous exposure we bring to the university, that our work is an important part of Michigan State's overall university brand. As we go forward, we will ensure that elements of the athletics visual brand identity align with and support the university brand.

As an athletics department and as a university, we are dedicated to maintaining an appreciation for our past while also being committed to moving our university and athletic program boldly into the future. As Spartans, I believe we can all pull together and embrace the mission of standing together with one focus -a focus broad enough to encompass both the vital importance of community and a relentless pursuit of excellence.

Thank you for your support, and Go Green - Go White!

Sincerely,

Mark J. Hollis, Director of Athletics

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Category: MSU

Draymond's take on logo

Well, it now seems fitting to share with you comments yesterday from Spartans forward Draymond Green about the MSU spartan helmet logo.

Since Green has been a fan of the school all of his life, I thought it would be interesting to get his take on the whole issue.

What Green said when I asked him about it after Thursday's practice:

"We're not going out there trying to look good. We're going to represent our school no matter what (the logo) is. (Coach Izzo) hasn't really talked to us about (a potential change in logo or school colors). That's not our focus right now. Our focus is to win a Big Ten championship."

Well said, Draymond.

It appears the old logo has won anyway, based on a letter from atheltics director Mark Hollis to fans.

Read the entire letter here.

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Category: MSU

Korie appears ready

If you missed today's report (including comments from Tom Izzo) here on DetNews.com, I'll recap it for you: Kalin Lucas (low right ankle sprain) appears to be a game-time decision for Saturday's matchup at Illinois.

That means backup guard Korie Lucious must prepare like a starter, a role I think he's capable of performing well in. Lucious leads the team in assist-to-turnover ratio and is the only pure point guard on the roster.

That's no knock against Lucas, a great scorer. It's more of an endorsement of Lucious. I really think the Milwaukee native could be a special player for Izzo now and in the future.

I think of Lucas more as an undersized combo guard. Apparently Izzo does at times, too. He hasn't hesitated to play Lucas along with Lucious. It's a tandem that works well together.

Some of MSU's best moments through the first 23 games were when Lucas played more off the ball while Lucious was at the point. That's a ton of speed on the floor at the same time.

Lucious as a starter is an intriguing idea. Can you think of any other backup point guard in MSU history that was as quick or efficient statistically as Lucious is in limited minutes? I sure can't.

Oh yeah, and apparently he's a pretty amazing dunker in practice and pregame shootarounds, too. Players say he can do 360s, crazy alley-oops, all sorts of stuff.

I learned quickly to not underestimate this guy. Lucious is somewhat small (5-foot-11), but can be a big-time spark plug on the floor. He's quick, can throw great passes, has a nice outside shot and is very unselfish.

Lucious also has a great attitude, has a willingness to learn and played a huge role in MSU's rout of No. 1 overall seed Louisville last year.

When he came into that game with the second unit, there didn't appear to be a dropoff in production at all. Lucious had that look of extreme focus in that matchup, just like the rest of his teammates.

In case you're wondering, here's how Lucious and Lucas stack up statistically through 23 games:

Player - Pts. - Ast. - TO - FG%

Lucious - 5.17 - 87 - 37 - 36.1

Lucas - 15.5 - 91 - 56 - 46.1

Category: U-M

Hart and Michigan football

When his phone rang at 2:45 Tuesday morning, Michigan running backs coach Fred Jackson didn't know what to expect.

Immediately, he was concerned for his family.

And then he heard the familiar voices of former Wolverines Mike Hart and Jake Long. Hart is with Indianapolis in Miami preparing for the Super Bowl, and Long is a member of the Miami Dolphins.

"And I pick up the phone, 'Freddie J! It's Mike and Jake, we love you man!'" Jackson said Wednesday, laughing. "It's quarter to three, you know what I mean? I pick up the phone at quarter to three, and I'm thinking it's something wrong with (son) Jeremy or my mother, and it's these two nuts on the line."

Hart this week during the Super Bowl media day spoke a great deal about his desire to become a college football coach, specifically, the Michigan head coach.

"He told me that when he came in the door almost," Jackson said, referring to when Hart arrived at Michigan. "He said that was one of his goals, to be a football coach."

When might Hart's next career pursuit begin?

"I talk to Mike a lot, and here's what Mike tells me, as long as he will play, he will play, but he's had his mind set that when it's over, it's not going to be no going back and giving it another shot. He'll coach football. He's always said that, before he even went to Indianapolis. 'If I get an opportunity to play, fine, if I don't fine.' He wanted to be a college football player and a college football coach."

And the winner goes to...

As we've spanned the Midwest throughout the day here at DetNews.com, you've probably been wondering which school did the best nationally. Based on numerous reports, it appears to be Florida and Urban Meyer's 28 commitments. ESPN says the Gators have four five-star recruits, a whopping 15 four-star prospects and seven three-stars.